A Midnight Snack

A Piece of Goodness

     Though, to clarify, this wasn't supposed to be a midnight snack. It was supposed to be a dessert that would last through at least one meal. It did not. It came out of the oven at 12:30 am and there was only one measly piece left by 1 am. That measly piece disappeared the next morning. No prizes for guessing who ate it. Actually, I shared it with my friend KK who is visiting (and no those are not her real initials for those who know her, but those are the initials correlating to what I call her, so those are the initials you will come to know and love - sorry for the convolutedness, everybody else).

     So, what is this short-lived food? It is Chocolate Bread Pudding. And before you roll your eyes and wonder why I am making another bread pudding, let me tell you that there is a poor loaf of Trader Joe's bread that has gone kind of stale in my fridge. What else would you have me do with it?

     Wonder of wonders, this bread pudding created a niche for itself outside the other ones I have made so far. Both the cinnamon bun and the peanut butter and jelly bread puddings were delicious, but they were rather heavy. They were more dense desserts, to be enjoyed in small pieces at leisure because a little went a long way (especially the pb & j). This bread pudding is different. It is light. It is not too sweet. It is something three people can finish in one sitting. Sorry other people I meant to share it with.

    
     For a spur of the moment - I completely made up the recipe dessert, this chocolate bread pudding turned out delicious. Like I said, it was light and not cloyingly sweet. Instead, warm out of the oven, it was chocolatey, a little chewy but soft, and delicious. The crusty bits on top were extra good crunchy chocolatey morsels. We had two helpings each easily and didn't regret it at all. I love when midnight experiments turn into delicious midnight snacks.

Chocolate Bread Pudding

4 pieces Slightly Stale Crusty White Bread (I used Tuscan Pane from Trader Joes)
2 Eggs, Beaten
1/3 cup Yogurt
1/2 cup Milk
1/2 cup Sugar
1/2 tsp Vanilla
1 tbsp Cocoa

Butter a loaf pan. Crumble the pieces of bread into 1'' by 1'' pieces onto a plate. In a medium bowl (or large tupperware), mix together the eggs, yogurt, milk, sugar, vanilla, and cocoa thoroughly. Add the bread to the mixture, and stir everything together until all the pieces of bread are coated in liquid. Cover the container, and allow the bread to soak in the liquid for at least half an hour. When you are ready to bake, heat the oven to 425 degrees. Dump the soaked bread and any remaining liquid into the loaf pan, making sure they are evenly spread through the pan. Bake for 50-55 minutes, until the top looks set and firm. Allow to cool on a wire rack for five minutes, then serve straight out of the pan.

Almost There

     

     It's almost my spring break! Did you know? It starts this Friday. I cannot wait to have no class at all and nothing to do...except study for the quiz and two midterms I have directly after break, but hush. I have other things to think about. Such as: since I only have two days left in Philly, I really need to use up my groceries- carrots, chicken, yogurt, milk. That's not so bad. On top of which, I haven't cooked for rather a long time, and I need some curry to help me survive till Friday.

Artistic Marinade

      You know, people keep asking me how I get the time to cook, etc. while I have school. Here's the great thing about writing this blog: I always have food to eat (except on days without cooking), I don't eat out at all (so I am saving money- Yay!), I probably spend as much time cooking/eating with people as we would spend eating out, and cooking a real meal does not take that much more time or effort than frozen food. Especially when you are trying to heat up frozen food and you manage to set off the smoke detector and it just won't turn off for a very long time. That was me, yesterday, in the five minutes right before I had to leave for work. As numerous people told me: There is a lesson in this, just stick to cooking!

     So, that is what I am going back to doing, and I am so happy. Making a simple curry is just the most relaxing thing of all. I defrost and brine my chicken, mix up some yogurt marinade / curry base, dump the chicken in it, cut up some of my carrots (would it be ok to put my last bok choy in a curry? hm. I suppose not. I must cling to the last shreds of my authenticity), and it all simmers away. I love knowing my dinner will be a full and delicious meal.

I can't help that it's yellow...it just is yellow!

      So, carrots, yogurt, milk, chicken. All check. Delicious curry dinner, certified by PN who had some (of course), check. She ate it without anything because I was too lazy to simmer it down into thickness, and it did make a very good soup that way. For my part, I had some on rice with more yogurt because that is the way I do. The carrots were nice and soft, the curry was flavorful and not too spicy, the chicken was perfectly cooked. Yay food!

Carrot and Yogurt Chicken Curry 

1 lb Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs 
1 cup Yogurt 
1/2 cup Milk 
1 tsp Ground Coriander
1 tsp Garam Masala 
1/4 tsp Turmeric
1/4 tsp Ginger Powder 
1/8 tsp Salt 
1/8 tsp Red Chili Powder
2 Green Cardamom Pods 
2 tbsp Vegetable Oil 
3 mid-sized Carrots, Diced

Chicken Prep: 

Soak the chicken thighs in a large bowl filled with water, a spoon of salt, and a spoon of sugar. After preparing your marinade, take the chicken thighs out and cut them into bite sized pieces (1 in cubes).

Marinade and Curry:

In a large bowl, mix the yogurt, milk, ground coriander, garam masala, turmeric, ginger powder, salt, and red chili powder. Add the bite sized pieces of chicken and mix in thoroughly. Leave for ten minutes. Meanwhile, peel the carrots and dice them.

Then, heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the cardamom pods and fry them for a minute. Next, draining the chicken of as much liquid marinade as possible, sear the chicken on both sides at medium heat. Don't crowd the pan: you can sear one batch of chicken, place it in a bowl, and then sear another batch. Once all the chicken has been seared, dump it all back into the saucepan, pour in the marinade, and add the carrots. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer the curry for ten minutes or until the carrots are soft. If you want the curry thicker, simmer for slightly longer. 

French Yogurt Cake

Notice how it is looming over you...waiting to be tried (I don't know why I cut at an angle....oh well)

I have wanted to make French Yogurt Cake for so very long. I think its because every blog I've read about it has said its the first cake French children learn to make. I imagine a life in the French countryside. One day I turn five (or eight? when do people first start making cake in France?), and my mother says: It's time! We get out a beautiful glass jar of yogurt, and I measure yogurt, and milk, and flour, and whatever else I use in that jar. And then, I save the jar forever! Except, of course it doesn't happen that way. This is definitely not my first cake, and my yogurt came in a big plastic tub. Oh well, better late in Philadelphia than never in France.

For my recipe, I always meant to try Dorie Greenspan's EVO Yogurt Cake. Unfortunately, as so often happens, I didn't have all the ingredients she required. No lime for zesting, no extra virgin olive oil (well, actually there was EVOO in my cupboard - but I was so convinced it was not extra virgin I never even bothered to look...sigh). Regardless, I tweaked Dorie's recipe using lemon juice instead of the lime and regular old vegetable oil. It was still delicious. Moist and slightly lemony on the inside with those delicious browned edges that I always seem to nibble off a cake before I know what I'm doing. It lasted exactly one full day in my apartment, and then was gone. Sliced off and eaten with strawberry jam, this cake was far too good to last. Once again, I figured I would post this even though am still working on the uploading pictures front. It'll happen soon, believe in me :) AND its happened! Yay!

Yogurt Loaf Cake
(Only Slightly Adapted from Dorie Greenspan's EVO Yogurt Cake Recipe)

Makes 8 servings 

1 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour 
2 tsp Baking Powder
1/8 tsp Salt 
1 cup Sugar
1 tsp Lemon Juice 
1/2 cup Plain Yogurt
3 Large Eggs 
1/4 tsp Vanilla Extract 
1/2 cup Vegetable Oil  

Center a rack in the oven and pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8 1/2 by 4 1/2 inch loaf pan. In one medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together, then set aside. Pour the sugar and lemon juice into another medium bowl, mixing them together until the sugar is fragrant. Whisk in the yogurt, eggs, and vanilla until well-blended. Then, whisk in the dry ingredients. Using a wooden spoon or spatula, fold in the oil. The batter will be thick and shiny. Scrape it into the loaf pan, and place in the oven. Bake for 55 minutes, or until it is golden and starts to come away from the sides. Cool on a wire rack for five minutes, then run a knife between the cake and the sides of the pan. Unmold and cool to room temperature right side up.

You can keep the cake at room temperature for at least 4 days or freeze it for up to 2 months. 

The Last Picture before Demolition